One of the major successes of the Modi government is the way it has dealt with Pakistan. From the surgical strikes to Foreign minister Sushma Swaraj’s fiery speech at United Nations, India has made it clear that it refuses to play by Pakistan’s rules after 2014. Whenever Pakistan has come face to face with India, it has only tasted defeat, of which the latest example is that of Kulbhushan Jadhav’s case in the International Court of Justice. India has hardened it’s approach towards Pakistan since the advent of the Modi government. With the cancellation of the SAARC summit, India successfully isolated Pakistan regionally. The listing of Pakistan in the FATF grey list was a feather in the cap for PM Modi. Recently, PM Modi inaugurated Kishanganga Hydroelectric Power station in Jammu and Kashmir amidst cries of ‘wolf’ from the Pakistan side.
Outgoing Pakistan Foreign Minister has also acknowledged that India’s attitude towards Pakistan has changed now that India has become more aggressive. According to PTI, Khurram Dastgir Khan, the outgoing Pakistan Foreign Minister on Thursday said that India since PM Modi has came to power has started issuing “aggressive statements and postures against Pakistan”. Indians had been growingly disappointed with the government’s inaction over Pakistan’s regular ceasefire violations and infiltration of Kashmir with its homegrown terrorists. The government had initially believed that dialogues were the only way forward, not understanding that Pakistan’s basis of existence was Indophobia.
The previous government was only making the situation embarrassing by organizing events like Aman ki Asha. Now, the country has a government which has a clear cut policy regarding Pakistan. Now, India is answering Pakistan in its own language and giving them a taste of their own medicine. The outgoing Foreign Minister of Pakistan has also confirmed the tough approach of India towards Pakistan as the government has become aggressive on several fronts. PTI quoted that he also complained about how India disrespected the Indus water treaty and the halted the progress of the regional SAARC meet. This helplessness and genuflection of Pakistan in front of PM Modi is what Indians have wanted for so long, proving why they elected PM Modi to power in the first place.
Although the outgoing Pakistan Foreign Minister was trying to be critical of the Modi government, this is music to every Indian’s ears. This is further confirmation that the Modi government holds no illusions of Pakistan’s reality, and is finally dealing with the terrorist state using an approach that we should have adopted long ago.
The Pakistan Foreign Minister also complained that India rejected Pakistan’s “future oriented approach. He said,“In return, we have received negativity and aggression from India, with no dialogue at any level. We really hope that the new governments in both Pakistan and India are able to instill a fresh impetus in the relations between both the countries.” He also accused India of violating the ceasefire agreement at (LoC), which is rather rich coming from their side.
Despite Pakistan’s anti-India policy, PM Modi invited his Pakistani counterpart for his swearing-in and also visited Pakistan by breaking a decades long protocol and risking his life. He touched the feet of Nawaz Sharif’s mother in a show of respect and humility, in line with Indian tradition. Later on Pakistan PM sent a return gift of white sari for the mother of PM Modi as PM Modi had gifted his counterpart’s mother a shawl. All of this was, thankfully, complete hogwash, just like Pakistan’s outreach has always been. Two can play this game, which is a double game to begin with.